With the advent of the computer age, electronic systems have become a staple of modern life, and some may even deem them a necessity. Part and parcel with this spread of technology comes an ever greater drive for more functionality from these electronic systems. A microcosm of this quest for increased functionality is the size and capacity of various semiconductor devices. From the 8 bit microprocessor of the original Apple I, through the 16 bit processors of the original IBM PC AT, to the current day, the processing power of semiconductors has grown while the size of these semiconductors has consistently been reduce. In fact, Moore's law recites that the number of transistors on a given size piece of silicon will double every 18 months.
As these complex systems have involved, their use in the mobile environment has increased. As the mobility of such devices has increased, they are, in turn subject to increasing amounts of shocks and vibrations which results from their transport and use. Consequently, the protection of the components in these mobile devices has presented a problem. This problem has been exacerbated in the mobile environment, where packaging limitation and the resulting space and weight constraints may raise further impediments to adequate protection of components utilized in such mobile devices.
These problems may manifest themselves even more dramatically in the context of implementing mission critical mobile computing platforms, such as mobile computers designed to be utilized by members of the armed services in combat situations or other arenas or situations where the proper operation of these electronic components is of the utmost importance. As these mission critical mobile devices may have a number of operational constrains imposed on them, including constraints related to shock resistance (such as MIL-810-F, MIL-810-G), imperviousness to liquids, operating temperature, radiation emissions, etc. of such mission critical mobile devices may be even more difficult, as necessities imposed by other constraints (for example, sealed portions of chassis, chassis material, etc.) may further limit the protection solutions which may be utilized.
Previous attempts at addressing shock and vibration have dramatically increased system height, weight, width and depth as a result of bulky isolation enclosures, while other solutions do not address the source of the shock or vibrations which may be present at the system or component level.
As it is still desired to protect such mobile devices and components in these mobile devices, (especially in the context of mission critical devices where protection may be especially desired), what is required are sophisticated and effective solutions for optimizing protection while simultaneously accounting for desired system dimensions, manufacturability and weight.